Schoeneberg
“Ich bin ein Berliner,” Kennedy made his famous speech here in front of the town hall, Rathaus Schoeneberg. The Schoeneberg Town Hall is the seat of the Governing Mayor of West Berlin and the Senate Chancellery. It is a large, rectangular sandstone building with a steep hipped roof, symmetrical wings and a clock tower in the middle. The building is situated in front of a plaza named John-F.-Kennedy-Platz, after the president. The neighbourhoods of Schoeneberg include the Bavarian Quarter, an affluent neighbourhood with streets named after Bavarian towns; Rote Insel (“Red Island”), a working class neighbourhood on the wrong side of the tracks; Kleistpark, a large Prussian-era park in an area in decline; and Nollendorfplatz, the gay quarter which comes alive at night with clubgoers, hustlers, pimps and streetwalkers. Schoeneberg is all Western capitalist excesses. The rich mingle with the poor, the upscale with the seedy. People are everywhere in Schoeneberg; news travels fast and people talk when something happens. Surprisingly, crime is an issue in an area full of cops and legislators. People here may campaign about social issues but turn a blind eye towards what goes on in front of their doorsteps. Information is easily available; access is good through well-maintained roads and the U-bahn. 'Locations' 'Bavarian Quarter' The streets of the Bavarian Quarter have names like Ansbach, Bayreuth, Landshut, and Muenchen, named after Bavarian towns. The houses have stately exteriors typical of the Wilhelmine era, and interiors of marble and granite, stucco, stained glass and ceramic decorations. The neighbourhood square, Viktoria-Luise-Platz, is known for the salons surrounding it during the early 20th century. A large ornamental fountain sits in the middle of the square, which is roughly hexagonal in shape and has six spokes of pathways radiating out from the centre. Colonnades and neatly-trimmed flower beds adorn the square. Travelling south takes you to another square, Bayerischer Platz, which is known for its social scene of artists and intellectuals. It has the former residences of Albert Einstein, Erich Fromm, Gottfried Benn, and Billy Wilder. 'Salon of Cecilia von Marburg' This townhouse faces Viktoria-Luiz Platz, and was known in the Imperial days as the salon of Cecilia von Marburg, a mysterious but extremely wealthy Austrian countess. The building is part of a terraced row of townhouses, each narrow and elegant, five to six stories tall. The exterior is a brickwork of red russet red set within white border stones. The doors face away from the entrance, set within an alcove. On the door is a knocker shaped like the horned head of a goat. Once within, the visitor is greeted with a tall but narrow entrance hall. The hall is decorated with a rather overwrought fresco, given the nickname “Dante and Virgil”, like the painting of the same name that hangs in the Musée d'Orsay today. It depicts Dante and Virgil travelling to hell, looking on at the central figures, two damned souls with their bodies contorted in physical struggle. One man's body is arched back in agony while the other man takes a bite from his neck. A marble staircase on the left leads to a small semicircular balcony, placed between two columns of rose marble. The first floor is a smaller parlour reserved for the inner circle of Cecilia von Marburg. The Countess used to address her courtiers from the balcony. Those who are lucky enough to gain her favour are invited to the first floor for a more intimate audience. Of course, those days are long past and now you are more likely to find the steward, polishing off silverware and dusting off antiques. Upper Floor This is a space used for conversation and socialising. Groups of Louis Quinze chairs with plush velvet seats are arranged near the edge of the room. The centre is left bare and lit with an Art Noveau crystal chandelier. The burgundy carpet and matching drapes give off a rich, intimate vibe. Various sculptures are displayed throughout the room; the scandalous tastes of the Countess are again evident, carved out of Carrara marble—the rape of Proserpina, Judith and Holofernes, Saturn eating his child. 'U-Bahnhof Viktoria-Luise-Platz' The entrance to this U-Bahn station is located in one corner of Viktoria-Luise-Platz. The stone columns surrounding the staircase fits in with the ornamental nature of the park. The platform is underground and has green and white tiles on the walls and green columns. 'Heinrich-von-Kleist Park' This park is bounded by the streets of Pallasstrasse, Potsdamer Strasse, Grunewaldstrasse, and Elssholzstrasse. It was first laid out in 1656 by Elector Frederick William of Brandenburg as a botanical garden. In 1911 it gained its present name, Heinrich-von-Kleist, named after the celebrated German poet. Deep within the park is the Kammergericht building, the old Prussian state court. In 1945 it was used by the Allies for meetings of the Allied Control Council. Before the Kammergericht building is the King’s Colonnade, two massive, double-rowed series of columns that was moved here from Alexanderplatz, featuring Prussian-era statues of cherubs and soldiers on horseback. Kleistpark is surrounded by several buildings, like the former Royal Botanical Museum, the State Art School, and the Pallasstrasse Hochbunker. The area around Kleistpark seems to be in decline; the affluent residential areas are gradually being replaced by cramped, poorly-constructed social housing projects. 'Kammergericht' The Kammergericht building is a grand, palatial building built in the Baroque style, located deep in the park and once housed the Prussian state court. The building is occupied by the Allied Control Council, which is the military occupation governing body of Germany consisting of the Soviet Union, the United States, the United Kingdom, and France. The Allied Control Council had not met since 1948, the start of the Cold War—when the Soviet representative Marshal Vasily Sokolovsky walked out of a meeting in anger. The rest, as they say, is history. The 550-roomed Kammergericht building is now staffed by the Berlin Air Safety Centre (BASC), which occupies forty rooms at most. The skeleton staff is very rarely seen. Civilian entry is forbidden and armed guards are stationed across the perimeter. Very little of the interior can be seen through the windows; any shapes that can be made out tend to be shrouded in featureless darkness. Treppenhalle The entrance hall of the Kammergericht is mostly untouched from its Four Power days. Empty and unlit, the only source of light comes in through the windows. The hall is circular with a domed ceiling and three floors of balconies overhead. Ornate baroque motifs decorate the ceiling. The floor is dark oak and a grand staircase is located in the centre, leading up to the first floor. In each of the floors, arched alcoves lead to the maze of rooms and offices that make up the interior of the Kammergericht. 'Pallasstrasse Hochbunker' This architectural oddity located on the north side of Kleistpark was an air-raid bunker constructed by the Nazis. It is a vine-covered, rectangular bunker with a sealed entrance, and apartment blocks had been constructed all around and even over it without touching the actual structure. The apartment block forms an eight-storey high bridge over the bunker, and connects to the Sportspalast (think Nazi rallies, Herman Goering's “Total War”) from across the street.The housing projects in this area is nicknamed “Sozialpalast” (social housing palace) by the locals. The actual bunker is a thick cement building that had survived a few attempts at demolition by the U.S. authorities. Vines and moss had climbed over the bunker, invading into the cracked paint exterior of the housing blocks above. The facade of the housing blocks are a chaos of satellite dishes, exposed wiring, and streaks of black mold stains. Pallastrasse Hochbunker Interior Cold and empty, this long, rectangular bunker goes on for three storeys. The walls are bare and constructed from thick cement. The bunker was originally designed for storage of materials, and therefore not well-ventilated. A human may find themselves running out of oxygen the longer they stay in this bunker. 'U-Bahnhof Kleistpark' This station can be accessed through staircases located on either side of a busy intersection. The station has metallic cylinders for pillars and white tiles on the walls, and a stripe of brown in between the tiles bearing the name “Kleistpark”. 'Nollendorfplatz' This square in northern Schoeneberg is known for its nightlife and gay club scene. It has a road connection to Kurfuerstenstrasse, and several main roads leading off to it—one of them connects to Tauenzienstrasse in the west, and another one is its famous Motzstrasse, the historic gay village. Nollendorfplatz has the imposing facade of the Neues Schauspielhaus (New Theatre) on its south side and the U-bahn station of Nollendorfplatz, which serves as the interchange for four U-bahn lines. Known for its decadence and “balls for Sodomites” in the twenties, Nollendorfplatz today is a district of clubs, leather bars, “lifestyle shops”, and transvestite cabarets. There are tenement houses and cheap apartments wedged in between entertainment venues. The living conditions are poor and social problems run rampant. 'Fritz' Fritz bar, located on a main intersection on Motzstrasse, is as seedy as they come. This is a place for those who want to get down to business. The lighting is dim and the ambience is charged with a masculine musk. The staff and regular patrons are clad in leather; the décor is steel and leather-themed with plenty of secluded corners affording semi-privacy. The music is slow and bass-heavy, drowning out the low moans that occasionally emanate from the booths. Dark Room *Remove after building Pushing a set of heavy black doors leads you to the dark room, located in the basement. The light in this room is so dim that it often takes a few moments for the eyes to adjust. The walls are bare and exposed ductwork runs across the ceiling. During peak hours the room is filled with people—heat and undulating bodies swaying to the music. There are leather couches on the sides of the room; the light is dim enough to obscure what actually gets left behind on these couches at any given night. 'Metropol' *Socialize 2 The old Art Noveau theatre, Neues Schauspielhaus, had become a shrine for disco. The facade alone is impressive enough—columns of stone, sculptures, arched glass windows, and a roof akin to a Greek temple. Glass doors provide entry to the massive interior. The main hall had been outfitted with laser lights; sixteen large mirrored disco balls rotate as they hang from the ceiling, multiplying the effects of the beams. At the end of the hall is a stage, with large, glittery props suspended over it and even more light show equipment. The dance floor is made of a heavy wooden floorboard and enclosed with seating areas. The galleries overhead were part of the old theatre.The DJ is in a gallery opposite the stage, in a spacious booth surrounded by glass walls. This place has a primarily gay clientele but welcomes people of all genders and orientations. At any given night, you might see leather men and transvestites mingling with New Wave kids while celebrities sip champagne and tourists gather to gawk at the spectacle. The music is upbeat and energetic; the equipment is state-of-the-art, producing a sound that is both unique and modern. Blue Room This is one of the galleries that overlook the main hall, renovated to suit modern tastes. The old theatre seats have been removed and replaced with glass tables and moulded plastic chairs. A space is cleared in the middle for dancing. Drinks and champagne can be ordered to be delivered up to the room. The balcony grants a view of the dance floor in its entirety. Thick velvet blue curtains obscure the gallery from view of the crowd down below. 'U-Bahnhof Nollendorfplatz' A busy train station that is the intersection for four U-bahn lines, two above-ground and two below. The train tracks for the above-ground lines are elevated and crosses the main square of Nollendorfplatz overhead. Late at night, the mainstream crowd disappears and atmosphere becomes just a bit more unsavoury. 'Rathaus Schoeneberg' The focal point of this neighbourhood is John-F-Kennedy-Platz, and behind it, the Schoeneberg Town Hall. This is the location where Kennedy made his famous “Ich bin ein Berliner” speech in 1963. The square is paved with grey concrete and a plaque commemorates the location where Kennedy stood to make his speech. This square is heavy with foot traffic and attracts frequent gatherings of protesters, due to its association with liberty and democracy. There have been a few clashes with police over the years, ending in injury and arrests. The two parks near the area are called Rudolph-Wilde-Park and Heinrich-Lasenn-Park. They are quiet oases of green providing recreational spaces for the community, perfect for cycling and jogging. 'Rathaus Schoeneberg' *Politics 4 *Status: Politics The Schoeneberg Town Hall is the seat of the Governing Mayor of West Berlin and the Senate Chancellery. It is a large, rectangular sandstone building with a steep hipped roof, symmetrical wings, and a clock tower located in the middle. The city Senators and House of Representatives operate out of this hall, headed by the city’s Governing Mayor, Dietrich Stobbe. Dark red mahogany features heavily in the interior decor of the town hall. The pillars and balustrades are all made out of mahogany, contrasting vividly with the off-white walls and the rectangular-coffered ceiling. Two red-carpeted staircases lead to the offices on the upper floors. The floor has a pattern of interlocking squares created by dark lines on pale, polished stone. 'Radio in the American Sector' *Communications 2 *Persuasion 3 *Status: Media On the opposite side of the Rudolf-Wilde-Park from the town hall is the RIAS building--Rundfunk im amerikanischen Sektor. This radio station broadcasts news, interviews, and cultural programs to target specific East German audiences. Airing pro-West messages, it is supervised by the United States Information Agency (USIA), of which Dwight Eisenhower said, “Audiences would be more receptive to the American message if they were kept from identifying it as propaganda.” As a free voice of the free world, the station aired the chime of the Freedom Bell each Sunday at noon, followed by an excerpt from the text of the “Declaration of Freedom”. This building has a wide, curving exterior and rows of square, geometric windows. Satellite dishes and more than a few antennas protrude over the roof. The sign for RIAS flashes in blue. Inside the building, there are broadcasting studios, editing offices, and archives for the storage of past programs. 'U-Bahnhof Rathaus Schoeneberg' This station is in Rudolf-Wilde-Park, located next to a duck pond. It has a white-painted exterior and the Carl Zuckmayer Bridge above it, which is lined with Baroque sculptures. The rows of floor-length windows on either side let in plenty of light to the platform. 'Rote Insel' Rote Insel means “Red Island”. It is a neighbourhood on the wrong side of the tracks—three, to be exact. The trenches dug to accommodate tracks for trains and light-rail form a triangular-shaped intersection, isolating a part of the neighbourhood from Schoeneberg at large. To reach this area, one has to cross one of the road bridges constructed over the tracks. The air is choked with exhaust fumes; people live in run-down Grunderzeit-era buildings with barely-functioning utilites. The “Red” comes from the leftist sympathies that most people here are known to have. The activities of workers groups and left-wing political unions leave a trail of slogans and posters in their wake. 'Old St. Mattaeus Churchyard' *Occult 2 This is a quiet, secluded graveyard that used to belong to the old St. Matthew church in Schoeneberg, now no longer in existence, having fallen victim to one of the many bureaucratic readjusments in Berlin ever since the War. The churchyard itself is quite big, surrounded by an ornate wrought iron fence. The gravestones are lined neatly amongst the dense, delicate foliage. Four headstones mark the resting place of the Brothers Grimm, on a plot planted with roses and lavenders. Statues of angels and cherubs watch over the dead. The ground is a soft carpet of grass, from which small daffodils sprout. 'Tauenzienstrasse' Tauentzienstrasse runs east to west connecting two important squares—Wittenbergplatz in the east and Breitscheidplatz in the west. It is continuous with Kurfuerstendamm in Charlottenburg. Like Ku'damm, Tauentzienstrasse is a shopping district with an array of upscale shops and luxury brands. This broad street is designed in the style of a Parisian boulevard. In the middle runs a green strip with benches, flowers and ornamental shrubbery. The gothic spires of the Kaiser Wilhelm Church looms in the west, serving as the backdrop to this booming location. 'Kaufhaus des Westens' The facade of the Kaufhaus des Westens (“KaDeWe”) spans the roadside just after Wittenbergplatz. It is the largest departmental store in continental Europe—with seven floors and 44,000 square metres of retail space. The art nouveau exterior boasts a large, glass-paneled semi-circular skylight. It sells luxury goods, fashion items, home and interior design, entertainment and electronics, and the entire top floor is dedicated to food. World-class bakers and confectioners supply more than 30 gourmet counters. The pricing is a bit steep but the KaDeWe is not short of people who can afford its wares. Tens of thousands of shoppers visit every day, packing out its halls until closing hours at 8pm. 'U-Bahnhof Wittenbergplatz' This is one of the oldest stations of the U-bahn, built in 1902. It has a sandstone exterior with a T-shaped floor-plan and a cross-gable roof. Its feature is its large entrance hall, where the shape of the pitched roof can be seen from within, and multiple skylights are incorporated along the roof ridge to let in the sun. This station has three platforms, all underground, serviced by five tracks. Category:Territories Category:Schoeneberg